WIKIPEDIA.ORG / 2005Of course I'm talking about Nara Dreamland, the infamous park in Nara, Japan. Built in 1961, the park was designed to be an exact replica of Disneyland. Rumor has it that the developers of the park sent many of their people to Disneyland after its 1955 opening to take thousands of photographs, which they later used to design their park after.
LEFT: Nara's version of Sleeping Beauty Castle. RIGHT: The original version at Disneyland.This bizarre park is essentially a dirtier version of the Happiest Place on Earth. It's got everything: Main Street Train Station, Sleeping Beauty Castle, the Monorail, even the Matterhorn Bobsleds. Unfortunately, the filthy state of the park reminds guests that they're not in Disneyland.
LEFT: An aerial view of Nara Dreamland. RIGHT: An aerial view of Disneyland.
LEFT: An aerial view of Nara Dreamland. RIGHT: An aerial view of Disneyland.The park has been described as "the world's finest play ground facility" in a pamphlet for the park, although visitors beg to differ. The people over at Theme Park Review described the park as "[the] alternate universe Disneyland...most of the place looks like [an] abandoned park."
ALL IMAGES ON LEFT ARE NARA DREAMLAND; ALL IMAGES ON RIGHT ARE DISNEYLAND.
Needless to say, Nara Dreamland closed permanently on August 31, 2006. It's safe to say that this is one park that will not be missed.
Sources: themeparkreview.com, athenamama.com, disneycastmagic.com
4 comments:
That character in the top photo creeps me out!
Wow! I wasn't aware it closed. I wonder if they tried to sell it first, or if they are selling any of the artifacts.
I would buy something from that place for sure.
Looks like there are quite a few fake Disneylands in China at the moment:
http://www.japanprobe.com/?p=1724
http://www.japanprobe.com/?p=1740
http://www.japanprobe.com/?p=1748
actually looks a lot more fun than the real thing! Cool place in Nara! too bad it closed.
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